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Another sibling. Another twin. Fraternal, but no need for DNA testing to prove the heritage.

Ford cars have given birth to Mercurys. Now a Ford sport-utility has been joined by a Lincoln crib mate.

The Ford Expedition (Cartalk, Aug. 4, 1996) has been dolled up–and the grille changed–to give the market another full-size luxury sport-ute, the Lincoln Navigator.

The reasoning is simple. When Lincoln-Mercury owners had $30,000 to spend on a sport-ute, they could get a Ford Explorer with a Mercury Mountaineer namebadge on it, but when they had $40,000 to spend, they had to pop into a Land Rover, Lexus or Infiniti dealership.

Nothing drives a dealer to distraction more than having a customer walk out the door with a full wallet or bulging purse.

Enter the ’98 Navigator, now arriving in showrooms.

Navigator is Expedition with manners–a bit more comfortable leather seating, a softer car-like suspension so you don’t experience even a hint of road harshness (but take a turn or corner at speed and you’ll experience some body swing, making you wish you had the Expedition’s firmer truck-like springs and shocks) and a 5.4-liter V-8 (Expedition offers a 4.6 V-8 and the 5.4) to climb hills or pull the pontoon without hesitation.

Just remember to remove the Monroney label affixed to the window before you have time to study the posted fuel economy average–13 miles per gallon city/17 highway. Luckily (mercifully might be a better word), Navigator comes with a 30-gallon tank.

Ford unveiled the Expedition to the media in Alaska. It pulled the cover on the Navigator in Downers Grove. We understood the symbolism of Alaska for a vehicle named Expedition, but Downers Grove for a Navigator still has us stumped.

Navigator has lots to offer, as any $43,000 vehicle should. It comes in 4×2 or 4×4 version. To separate it from Expedition, Navigator sports a black vertical bar grille surrounded by a wide chrome band. Chrome also is the material of choice for the door handles–fine for the ’50s and ’60s, but looks a tad old-fashioned in the ’90s.

We tested the 4×4 with its handy push buttons to engage 4WD/4WD low/4WD high. Simple and quick.

The 5.4 gets you moving without delay, but even though you have four-wheel anti-lock brakes as standard, be prepared to apply the binders a few feet earlier than in the smaller, lighter Mountaineer.

Though you’ll have to adjust to the poundage when stopping or parking, Navigator comes with speed-sensitive power steering for quick response maneuvering when pulling out to pass or scooting down the merge lane.

Navigator comes with four-corner load-leveling suspension as standard–an option on Navigator–to keep you on an even plane, regardless of the load, for smooth ride, sure handling and more precise braking.

Navigator is filled with goodies, such as a wallet holder in the dash, powe r plugs in the front and rear consoles (plug your cellular in anywhere), cupholders and juice-box holders everywhere, a CD holder as well as tissue holder in the center console, a writing tray, far too many map holders, bus-like roominess for second-seat passengers and a two-piece glass window/tailgate for tossing stuff in or yanking it out.

Being a four-wheel-drive unit and standing tall to allow for snow-covered pavement or off-road clearance, normal mortals might need a lift getting in or out of Navigator. Ford obliges with standard running boards.

Nice touch, and it has an added benefit: The running boards stick out enough so that if someone parks close and opens his or her door carelessly, they’ll strike the board, and not your door.

And, thankfully, function won out on sideview mirrors, which are massive yet aerodynamic, so you aren’t bothered by lots of wind noise at highway speeds.

Unfortunately, Navigator also has some annoyances.T enter the third seat, you have to lower the back of the second seat. The second seat doesn’t fold down and flip forward to make third-seat entry navigable. Once in the third seat, your head will hit the roof unless you’re a toddler.

And on a family vacation, you’ll have to pack light because to hold a third seat, Navigator doesn’t hold much else. You’ll get less in the stowage area than you can legally carry aboard an airplane. A roof-mounted rack is standard, and you may have to use it.

Another woe is that the door handles are positioned in the middle of the driver’s and passenger’s thigh. (We have a suggestion where the designer can stick the door handles on the redesign.)

Since Navigator is a luxury model, it comes only with leather seats, which rule out carting rough-edged cargo that could mar or scar the cowhide coverings.

Consumers have to make a choice when it comes to a power moonroof ($1,665 with overhead console and garage-door opener) or an auxiliary heater/air conditioner to serve rear seat passengers ($750). Both occupy the same location in the roof.

Standard equipment, in addition to that noted, includes dual air bags and ABS, power windows and door locks, remote keyless entry, trailer-towing package, power windows in the rear doors, solar-tinted glass, heated mirrors, speed-sensitive wipers that adjust sweep based on how fast or slow you are going, child-proof rear-door locks and power seats.

The 4×4 starts at $42,660, the 4×2 at $39,310.

Lincoln Navigator update

As noted, the Ford Expedition (Cartalk, Aug. 4, 1996) has been dolled up–with a new grille and manners–to provide another full-size luxury sport-ute, Lincoln Navigator (Cartalk, June 8).

First test was a day spent in Downers Grove. Now we’ve had it for a week and must note that one item we initially found enticing is an annoyance, but one that can be fixed, simply, by Ford Motor Co.

The running boards serve a couple of purposes. They help block misguided doors flung open by the parking-lot challenged, folks who think nothing of banging the door of their ’89 econocar into the $46,000 luxury machine.

The running boards also keep road debris from being flung up from the pavement and nicking or scratching the body panels that the parking-lot challenged may have missed.

They also serve as a step into and out of the machine, a necessity in a monster of a 4WD sport-ute.

But Ford kept the running boards too close to the body, so you have only a small lip to stand on when trying to enter or exit the machine. Hit that tiny ledge in a pair of wet, leather-soled shoes and you may find yourself kissing the pavement with your nose.

The argument for a small lip is that Ford doesn’t want owners to get their pant legs dirty when exiting. Dirty pants look better than a bruised proboscis.

Speaking of noses, several Lincoln-Me rcury salesmen reported theirs out of joint after our initial review of Navigator, arguing the second seat does fold for easy access to the third seat.

In our review, however, we noted that the second seat “doesn’t fold down and flip over for easy entry to the third seat.” Rather than the seat back folding onto the seat bottom and then both pieces flipping over to offer wide entry to the third seat, the seat back and bottom raise and tilt forward as one piece.

We have a different view of easy access than those salesmen.

One other note: Fuel economy was preliminary when last we drove the unit at 12 m.p.g. city/17 m.p.g. highway with the 5.4-liter V-8. The government rating is 12/16, not 17 as reported.

>> 1998 Lincoln Navigator 4×4 Wheelbase: 119 inches Length: 204.8 inches Engine: 5.4-liter, 230-h.p. V-8. Transmission: 4-speed a tomatic EPA mileage: 13 m.p.g. city/17 m.p.g. highway Base price: $42,660 Price as tested: $45,820. Includes $1,655 for power moonroof with overhead console and automatic garage-door opener; $305 for 17-inch all-terrain tires; $355 for AM/FM stereo upgrade with cassette; $595 for compact-disc player; $110 for electrochromatic rearview mirror; $105 for skid plate; and $35 for engine-block heater. Add $640 for freight. Pluses: Smooth, softly sprung car-like ride with great visibility and scads of passenger room. The security of 4WD with push-button control. Dual air bags and ABS. Cupholders galore. Running boards standard to ease entry/exit. Minuses: More map pockets than Rand-McNally. Feels a tad top heavy in tight turns. Door handles rub legs. Third seat headroom at a premium and precious little cargo room behind it. Only leather seats. Second row of seats don’t fold down and flip over for easy entry to third seat or cargo area. Chrome door handles. >>